Ideas
‘End Forever Wars’ is a Sound Bite, Not a Security Policy
More and more Democratic candidates are echoing Trump’s pledges to withdraw from conflicts abroad. Few say how to do it, nor how it will make us safer.
Policy
On Iran, It’s Trump Vs. Trump
The president’s 2020 reelection campaign looms large over the decision whether to retaliate for a downed drone.
Science & Tech
HASC Chair on Mini-Nukes: 'We’re Not Trying to Manage a Nuclear War'
House Democrats don’t want to fund variable-yield nukes. The new chairman just explained why.
Policy
Mission No. 1: Esper Will Attend NATO Meeting Next Week
Avoiding international embarrassment, soon-to-be Acting Defense Secretary Mark Esper will attend a regularly scheduled defense ministers meeting.
Policy
Shanahan Out; Army Secretary Esper to Be Acting SecDef
Trump tweets the news after reports that the FBI was looking into a violent domestic dispute from nine years ago.
Policy
US to Send 1,000 More Troops to Poland
Last fall, Warsaw asked for a tank division. Looks like they're getting rotating logistics troops instead.
Policy
‘Space Force’ Shrinks in House Proposal
A bipartisan amendment would trim several generals from the new space-focused component.
Policy
Pentagon Gives Turkey a Deadline to Cancel S-400 Deal or Lose F-35
By July 31, says the ASecDef, Ankara must choose between the Russian S-400 or the U.S.-led JSF.
Policy
NATO’s New Military Commander: 'I Suspect' Turkish-Alliance Mil-to-Mil Ties Will Endure
In his first sitdown interview as SHAPE, Gen. Todd Wolters said Ankara cannot have both the F-35 and S-400.
Policy
Lawmakers Want the Final Say on Air Force One Paint Job
A House panel has drafted legislation that would require congressional approval if Trump wants to change the Kennedy-era livery.
Policy
Nuclear Experts Beg Congress to Push Back on Trump Administration’s ‘Dangerous Impulses’
A letter asks House and Senate Armed Services leaders to defund small nukes and support an extension for New START.
Policy
Shanahan ‘Not Planning’ USS McCain Investigation, But Still Reviewing Facts
“There’s no restriction on how people can send email,” the acting defense secretary said.
Policy
Still 'Acting' Shanahan Faces Test With China Face-off and USS McCain Scandal
Raising the stakes for the would-be SecDef, the White House has not yet sent formal nomination paperwork to the Senate.
Threats
Top US Officer: Iran’s Threats Look Like a ‘Campaign’
The Joint Chiefs chairman says he saw ‘multiple threat streams that were all, perhaps coming together, in time.”
Policy
Lockheed: We Could Easily Sell Turkey’s F-35s to Other Customers
CEO: We’ll be fine if Ankara buys a Russian air-defense system instead of our jets.
Policy
Trump Bypasses Congress to Sell Arms to Saudis, UAE
The rare decision, a fallout of last year’s Khashoggi killing, comes as tensions rise with Iran.
Policy
US To Send 900 Troops To Middle East To Counter Iran
The Trump administration insists that the deployment is purely defensive.
Policy
Space Force Clears Senate Committee After House Attempt to Stall
The Senate Armed Services Committee’s legislation “greatly increases the odds that we end up with some sort of a Space Force,” one expert says.
Policy
42 Countries Agree to International Principles for AI
The Organisation for Economic Coordination and Development released its global standards, which aim to ensure artificial intelligence is designed to be robust, safe, fair and trustworthy.
Policy